A Suitable Boy (BBC-1 2018)

A Suitable Boy is a modern classic about a young woman’s search for love and identity in a newly independent, post-Partition India defining its own future, this beloved novel has never been adapted for the screen before. Now, Andrew Davies’ scripts will bring the story to a whole new audience with his signature blend of warmth, wit and humanity.

A Suitable Boy is the story of Lata, a young woman coming of age in northern India in 1951. Lata’s mother Mrs Rupa Mehra is determined to find her a husband, but after her sister’s conventional arranged marriage Lata is not convinced she wants the same path through life. Torn between duty to her family and the excitement of romance, Lata embarks on an epic journey of love, desire and heartache as three very different suitors vie for her hand. Her choice will play out against the tumultuous political backdrop of India at a crossroads, looking towards its first independent general election and carving out its own destiny.

Vikram Seth says: “It is a great pleasure to collaborate with the BBC and Andrew Davies on an adaptation of A Suitable Boy. I have carried with me for a long time the stories of Lata, her family and the many people they encounter. With Andrew and his team I feel they are in good hands, and I greatly look forward to seeing them brought to life for television.”

Screenwriter Andrew Davies says: “Lata’s trials of the heart speak as loudly to me now as when I first read Vikram’s epic novel two decades ago. She is a great literary heroine in the tradition of Jane Austen and George Eliot. But behind her stands a massive supporting cast of striking, funny, irrepressible characters and a vision of India in the 1950s that no reader can ever forget. It will make a wonderful series and I can’t wait to bring the magic of the book to life on screen.”